Murthy, T. G., Loukidis, D., Carraro, J. A. H., Prezzi, M. & Salgado, R. (2007). Géotechnique 57, No.
3, 273–288
Undrained monotonic response of clean and silty sands



T. G . M U RT H Y , D. L O U K I D I S , J. A . H . C A R R A RO y, M . P R E Z Z I
A series of undrained monotonic triaxial compression
tests were performed on Ottawa sand containing 0%,
5%, 10% and 15% of non-plastic silt. The paper focuses
on distinctive states of the monotonic undrained response
of sands, namely the critical state, the phase transforma-
tion state, the quasi-steady state, and the state of un-
drained instability (onset of flow liquefaction). Specimens
were prepared using slurry deposition and moist tamping
to investigate the effect of the initial sand fabric on these
states. It was observed that an increase in the non-plastic
fines content leads to a downward shift of the critical-
state line in the void ratio–mean effective stress space
and to an increase of the critical-state friction angle. The
present data suggest that the initial fabric of the sand
appears to have a significant effect on the undrained
behaviour in the early stages of shearing, with its influ-
ence vanishing at large strains. Moist-tamped specimens
demonstrate considerably larger undrained instability
state strength than their slurry-deposited counterparts,
and a unique critical state locus is reached by both
moist-tamped and slurry-deposited specimens. A mathe-
matical formula that allows the estimation of the mean
effective stress at the phase transformation state based
on the initial mean effective stress and void ratio is also
proposed.
KEYWORDS: fabric/structure of soils; laboratory tests; sands;
shear strength; silts
INTRODUCTION
Critical state soil mechanics (CSSM) is an effective and useful
conceptual framework for modelling soil behaviour. The cen-
tral idea of the CSSM framework is that soils, when sheared,
reach a final state under a unique combination of effective
stresses and void ratio, irrespective of the loading history or
the stress paths. This state, called the critical state (CS), is
defined as the state at which the soil ‘continues to deform at
constant stress and constant void ratio’ (Roscoe et al., 1958).
Contradictory opinions have existed in the past regarding
the uniqueness of the critical state locus in void ratio–mean
effective stress space (e–p9 plane) with respect to
(a) drainage conditions
(b) initial void ratio e0 and initial mean effective stress p90
(initial soil state)
(c) the direction of the principal effective stresses relative
to the direction of soil deposition
(d ) the magnitude of the intermediate principal effective
stress relative to the other two principal effective
stresses
(e) the method of specimen preparation.
Manuscript received 24 October 2005; revised manuscript accepted
14 November 2006.
Discussion on this paper closes on 1 September 2007, for further
details see p. ii.

al., 2005). Ishihara (1993) and Zlatović & Ishihara (1997)
School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette,
USA.
y moist tamping and by dry deposition reach the same CS
Department of Civil Engineering, Colorado State University, USA.
273
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and R. SALGADO
On a effectué une série d’essais de compression triaxiaux
monotoniques non drainés sur du sable d’Ottawa conte-
nant 0%, 5%, 10% et 15% de limon non plastique. Cet
article se concentre sur les états distincts de la réponse
non drainée monotonique des sables, notamment l’état
critique, l’état de transformation de phase, l’état quasi-
stationnaire et l’état d’instabilité non drainé (début de
l’écoulement par liquéfaction). On a préparé des spéci-
mens en utilisant soit un dépôt de boue, soit un damage
humide pour faire des recherches sur l’effet de la struc-
ture initiale du sable sur ces états. On a observé qu’une
augmentation de la fraction fine non plastique mène à un
abaissement de la ligne d’état critique dans l’espace
indice des vides - contrainte effective moyenne et à une
augmentation de l’angle de frottement à l’état critique.
Les données actuelles suggèrent que la structure initiale
du sable semble avoir un effet significatif sur le compor-
tement non drainé aux stades initiaux du cisaillement
mais que cette influence disparaı̂t pour de fortes défor-
mations. Les spécimens préparés à l’aide du damage
humide font montre d’une résistance beaucoup plus
grande à l’état instable non drainé que les spécimens
préparés à l’aide d’un dépôt de boue. Cependant, les
deux types de spécimens atteignent un état critique
unique. Cet article propose une formule mathématique
permettant l’estimation de la contrainte effective moy-
enne à l’état de transformation de phase à l’aide de la
contrainte effective moyenne initiale et de l’indice des
vides.
In connection with experimental studies on the undrained
response of sands, the term ‘steady state’ (SS) has often
been used to refer to the same concept as the term ‘critical
state’. Recent investigations showing that these two states
are the same include Been et al. (1991), Verdugo & Ishihara
(1996), Riemer & Seed (1997), and Li & Wang (1998).
Therefore, in the present paper, we consider the terms CS
and SS to be equivalent, and we shall use a single term:
critical state.
It is well established that sand specimens will approach
the same CS line independently of the initial soil state (Been
et al., 1991; Ishihara, 1993; Verdugo & Ishihara, 1996;
Riemer & Seed, 1997). A number of studies have provided
evidence that the CS line for triaxial extension is consis-
tently different from the one for triaxial compression (Vaid
& Thomas, 1995; Riemer & Seed, 1997; Yoshimine &
Ishihara, 1998), although Been et al. (1991) presented data
supporting the opposite. Hollow cylinder test results indicate
that the direction of the effective principal stresses in
conjunction with the intermediate effective stress influence
the critical state locus (Yoshimine & Ishihara, 1998;
Yoshimine et al., 1998).
There is still debate over whether the critical state line is
independent of the specimen preparation method, and thus
of the different initial sand fabric that results when different
specimen preparation methods are used (Papadimitriou et
presented data according to which specimens prepared by
 274 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
100
locus in undrained triaxial compression, suggesting that any
memory of the initial sand fabric is erased at the large shear 90
strain levels required for the attainment of critical state.
80
The effects of small amounts of low-plasticity fines on the Clean sand
critical state line (CSL) of sands were first investigated by 70 5% silty sand
Been & Jefferies (1985). A number of studies on the influ- 10% silty sand
60
ence of fines content on the undrained monotonic response 15% silty sand

of sands have been published in recent years (Lade &
Yamamuro, 1997; Thevanayagam, 1998; Thevanayagam et
al., 2002; Ni et al., 2004). These studies show that, for a
given value of void ratio, the presence of non-plastic fines
increases the contractiveness and collapsibility or decreases
the dilativeness of the sand. Thevanayagam et al. (2002) and
Ni et al. (2004) have shown that the addition of non-plastic
fines to sand causes a clear downward translation of the
CSL in e–p9 space, which implies that the overall dilative-
ness decreases with increasing fines content for a given void
ratio.
Regarding the undrained sand response prior to CS, a
thorough examination of the quasi-steady state (the state of
a local minimum in deviatoric stress, followed by a rise of
deviatoric stress towards CS) and the undrained instability
state (the onset of flow liquefaction) is given by Ishihara
(1993) for Toyoura sand. Sladen et al. (1985) introduced the
concept of the collapse surface, which serves as a locus of
stress states at the onset of flow liquefaction. More recently,
Li & Dafalias (2000) have expressed the stress ratio at phase
transformation (the change in sand response from contractive
to dilative) as a function of the state parameter. In order to
quantify the undrained instability of sands, Yoshimine &
Ishihara (1998) proposed a variable they called the flow
potential, and Thevanayagam et al. (2002) defined a similar
variable they called collapse potential.
The goal of this paper is to examine the key features of
the undrained response of clean sand and sands containing
small amounts of non-plastic silt, focusing mainly on the
critical state, the phase transformation state and the flow
liquefaction state. For this purpose, we report the results of
a series of strain-controlled, undrained monotonic triaxial
(TX) compression tests performed on isotropically consoli-
dated specimens of Ottawa sand containing 0%, 5%, 10%
and 15% of non-plastic silt by weight. Given that the sand
was tested exclusively under triaxial compression conditions,
the particular findings and conclusions of this study must be
considered valid only for such stress conditions. The data
presented herein can also be used as reference for deriving
reliable values for the parameters needed in constitutive
models.
EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAMME
Materials and equipment used
All the tests in this experimental programme were per-
formed using Ottawa sand (designated as ASTM C778),
which is a silica sand with rounded particles. The sand is
classified as SP according to the Unified Soil Classification
System. The non-plastic silt used was the Sil-Co-Sil 106,
manufactured (by US Silica Co., Ottawa, IL) by crushing
Ottawa sand. The grain size distribution curves of the mix-
tures of Ottawa sand and non-plastic silt used in this study
are shown in Fig. 1. The uniformity coefficient Cu and the
mean grain size D50 of the sand were found to be equal to
1.43 and 0.39 mm respectively. The maximum and minimum
void ratios of the sand–silt mixtures (according to ASTM D
4254 and ASTM D 4253 respectively (ASTM, 2004)) are
provided in Table 1 (Carraro et al., 2003). The apparatus
used to perform the isotropically consolidated undrained
triaxial compression tests was the CKC automatic triaxial
testing system (Soil Testing Equipment Co., San Francisco,
% finer
50
40
30
20
10
0
0·001 0·01 0·1 1 10
Particle size: mm
Fig. 1. Grain size distribution curves for clean and silty Ottawa
sand
Table 1. Minimum and maximum void ratios for the sand-silt
mixtures according to ASTM D 4253 and ASTM D 4254
respectively
Percentage of silt emax emin
0 0.78 0.48
5 0.70 0.42
10 0.65 0.36
15 0.63 0.32
CA) (Chan, 1981). The testing apparatus was adapted with
lubricated and enlarged end-platens, given the fact that large
axial strains had to be achieved in order to reach critical
state. Cell and pore pressures were measured by transducers
with resolution of 2 kPa.
Methods of specimen preparation
Clean and silty sand specimens were prepared using
mainly two methods – slurry deposition (SD) and moist
tamping (MT) – and a few clean sand specimens were
prepared using water pluviation (WP). The slurry deposition
method proposed by Carraro (2004) and Carraro & Prezzi
(2007), which is a modification of the method originally
proposed by Kuerbis & Vaid (1988), was used. This method
ensures reasonably homogeneous and reproducible speci-
mens, creating a fabric that is believed to be similar to the
one encountered in real soil deposits formed under water.
The method involves mixing sand and silt in a cylindrical
Plexiglas tube filled with de-aired water. Based on the target
fines content for the specimen, the desired amounts of sand
and silt are first mixed vigorously in a closed container
under dry conditions. The dry mixture is poured slowly
through a funnel into a Plexiglas tube filled with de-aired
water. Then the Plexiglas tube (with both ends sealed with
rubber stoppers) is thoroughly turned between the upright
and upside-down positions multiple times for approximately
20 min to achieve the required uniformity. After that, the
rubber cap is removed, and de-aired water is added to raise
the water level back to the top of the tube. The tube
containing the slurry (topped with a plastic sheet) is quickly
inverted and lowered inside the triaxial split mould (filled
with de-aired water and positioned in the triaxial cell base),
where a thin membrane is already stretched in place. A

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS
collar is lowered on top of the mould. The plastic sheet is
withdrawn and the contents of the Plexiglas tube are then
released into the split mould by slowly raising the tube. The
collar is levelled off and densification of the specimen is
achieved by gently tapping on the sides of the split mould.
Subsequently, the collar is removed, the top of the mould is
gently levelled off, and the top cap with the piston rod is
secured on top of the specimen. The uniformity of the silty
sand specimens prepared using slurry deposition was verified
with the aid of the gelatin technique proposed by Emery et
al. (1973).
Although slurry deposition is superior to other specimen
preparation methods in terms of specimen uniformity and
reproducibility, it is very difficult to obtain slurry-deposited
specimens that are very loose. Moist tamping, on the other
hand, can be used to obtain sand specimens with large initial
void ratios or with initial soil states lying above the critical
state line. Moist-tamped specimens were prepared by placing
predetermined quantities of soil in the mould and gently
compacting it in six to ten layers using a flat-bottom tamper.
The water content of the soil during specimen preparation
was 8% by weight. The diameter of the tamper (D ¼
4.6 cm) was 35% smaller than the diameter of the specimen.
A few clean sand specimens were prepared using water
pluviation (WP). This method of preparation was possible
because Ottawa sand is a uniform sand without fines, and
thus particle segregation does not occur. This was done so
we could compare the response of these specimens with that
of SD specimens. Given the similarities of the two proce-
dures, the fabrics of water-pluviated and slurry-deposited
specimens are expected to be similar. The mechanical re-
sponses of reconstituted specimens prepared using water
pluviation and of undisturbed specimens were found to be
comparable by Vaid et al. (1999). For all three specimen
preparation methods employed, a vacuum of up to 34 kPa is
applied before removing the split mould and proceeding with
the test.
Undrained triaxial compression tests
The diameter and height of the specimens are approxi-
mately equal to 7.1 cm and 14.6 cm respectively. The dia-
meter of the enlarged end-platens is equal to 8.65 cm.
Back-pressures of up to 450 kPa (for as long as 18 h)
were applied to ensure complete saturation of the specimens.
B values higher than 0.95 were considered acceptable. After
saturation, all specimens were isotropically consolidated in
20 min steps; each increment was in the range 50–100 kPa
range. During the undrained shearing phase of the tests, the
applied axial strain rate was kept at 0.1%/min.
The void ratio of each specimen was evaluated from the
water content obtained after completion of the test. This
eliminates uncertainties originating from potentially unmoni-
tored changes in void ratio occurring during specimen hand-
ling and saturation. According to Verdugo & Ishihara
(1996), void ratio estimates based on water content are more
accurate and have less statistical scatter than those based on
initial specimen dimensions and measured volume changes
during testing. Upon completion of the test, the triaxial cell
was dismantled while keeping the drainage valves closed.
Then the specimen was emptied in an aluminium tray.
Special care was taken to ensure that the entire specimen
(all soil grains and water in the specimen) was considered in
the weight measurements. After oven-drying, the soil speci-
men was sieved and its fines content (percentage of soil
grains passing the no. 200 sieve) was determined. Grain
crushing in the specimens sheared during the testing pro-
gramme was not observed.
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275
Drained triaxial compression tests
Results from the undrained TX compression tests per-
formed in the context of this study are compared with those
from drained TX compression tests performed on the same
materials by Carraro (2004). The diameter and height of the
specimens were approximately 7.0 cm and 16.0 cm respec-
tively. All specimens were prepared using slurry deposition.
B values after back-pressure saturation (with pressure up to
450 kPa) were around 0.99. Specimens were isotropically
consolidated to three different levels of initial mean effective
stress (100, 200 and 400 kPa). The volume change of the
specimen was measured using a sensitive differential pres-
sure transducer. During the shearing phase of the tests, the
applied axial strain rate was 0.1%/min. This rate is slow
enough that any excess pore water pressure is fully dissi-
pated.
In both undrained and drained triaxial compression tests,
corrections regarding the change in cross-sectional area
during shearing were carried out using the right-circular
cylinder approach. Membrane corrections for axial and
radial stresses were not carried out, as these were found to
be insignificant. Membrane penetration was not taken into
account since the sand used in the experiments is a fine to
medium sand with a relatively small D50, and any correction
to the void ratio at critical state would not exceed 0.006.
EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Fundamental concepts and overview of test results
A total of 59 undrained monotonic triaxial compression
tests were performed on loose and medium dense specimens
(D R < 65%). Test results are summarised in Table 2. To
allow for a systematic quantification of the undrained mech-
anical behaviour of the soils studied, we distinguish the
following four states (Fig. 2): the critical state, the phase
transformation state, the quasi-steady state, and the un-
drained instability state. These states are discussed next in
light of our test results.
(a) Critical state. As defined previously, critical state is the
state at which the soil deforms at constant effective
stresses (i.e. zero change in q ¼ (
19 
39 ), p9 ¼
(
19 þ 2
39 )=3) and void ratio. However, in experiments,
there are small deviations from these ideal conditions.
For a number of the loose sand specimens tested, a
slight tendency of dilation was observed even at large
strains (the same behaviour was reported by Been et
al., 1991). Nevertheless, we considered the state at the
end of such tests as being the CS. Thirty-one speci-
mens with DR . 18% did not reach CS and showed a
clearly dilative response after phase transformation until
the very end of the test. Out of these 31 specimens, six
showed stress–strain response with clear signs of
stabilisation (significant changes in inclination and
curvature were observed in the stress–strain curves)
by the end of the tests. The CS for these six tests was
established through a sigmoidal extrapolation, details of
which are given in the Appendix. For the remaining 25
tests, which did not reach CS, it was not possible to
use the extrapolation procedure because the test results
did not show a clear point of inflexion in the p9–1
curves after phase transformation, because the test data
did not extend sufficiently beyond the point of inflexion
(for example, the test with e ¼ 0.584 in Fig. 3) or
because the specimens reached cavitation. Such test
results were excluded from the determination of the CS
loci. The inclusion of data from the extrapolated tests
does not alter the trends established by the data from
 276
Table 2. Summary of test results

Test Specimen Void p90 : p9end of test : p9CS : qend of test : qCS : p9PT : qPT : 1,PT : p9QSS : qQSS : 1,QSS : p9p : qp : 1;p :
prep. ratioy kPa kPa kPa kPa kPa kPa kPa % kPa kPa % kPa kPa %
method

Clean OMT1 MT 0.707 503 54 54 68 68 50 63 11.7 51 62 9.6 367 253 0.52

sand OMT2 MT 0.724 506 37 37 46 46 36 44 12.8 36 44 12.8 308 197 0.55
OMT3 MT 0.682 495 179 179 227 227 135 175 9.4 136 175 8.3 319 306 0.95
0.696 8.9 8.7 1.54

MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO

OMT4 MT 447 134 134 174 174 97 128 97 128 295 279
OMT5 MT 0.693 545 62 62 82 82 33 47 7.3 33 46 6.8 358 227 0.43
OMT6 MT 0.694 282 142 158* 160 178* 72 74 4.8 73 74 4.3 189 148 0.49
OMT7 MT 0.714 603 24 24 39 39 21 35 14.1 21 35 13.2 370 254 0.56
OMT8 MT 0.646 653 1313 – 1620 – 239 300 3.0 243 300 2.6 458 394 0.53
OMT9 MT 0.614 397 1272 – 1725 – 288 288 0.7 – – – – – –
OMT10 MT 0.701 653 169 169 203 203 96 123 10.0 96 123 10.0 456 348 0.58
OMT11 MT 0.711 646 38 38 51 51 32 43 16.6 32 43 16.6 375 230 0.64
OMT12 MT 0.725 284 32 32 39 39 28 35 16.8 28 35 16.8 182 136 0.48
OMT13 MT 0.707 649 65 65 83 83 56 73 16.9 56 73 15.6 467 337 0.57
OSD1 SD 0.648 648 1369 1668 – 181 221 2.5 204 218 1.9 393 271 0.61
OSD2 SD 0.654 644 1322 1381* 1593 1664* 145 154 2.8 153 150 2.1 387 215 0.60
OSD3 SD 0.652 647 1227 – 1489 – 136 162 3.1 141 159 2.5 364 212 0.56
OSD4 SD 0.652 301 962 962 1162 1162 54 68 2.3 57 66 1.8 158 84 0.46
OSD5 SD 0.631 496 1252 – 1562 – 235 278 2.0 244 272 1.3 312 278 0.65
OSD6 SD 0.645 301 876 888* 1095 1110* 98 97 2.5 100 94 1.9 197 120 0.42
OSD7 SD 0.631 652 1350 – 1676 – 323 368 1.9 – – – – – –
OWP1 WP 0.667 148 527 584* 646 716* 65 55 1.4 68 54 1.0 102 58 0.29
OWP2 WP 0.584 651 1354 – 1791 – 500 506 0.7 – – – – – –
OWP3 WP 0.643 345 1037 1037 1223 1223 168 180 1.5 – – – – – –
OWP4 WP 0.637 197 766 – 999 – 141 152 0.9 – – – – – –
5% silt 5MT1 MT 0.720 645 20 20 25 25 19 25 13.8 20 25 13.7 417 281 0.61
5MT2 MT 0.671 644 148 148 205 205 104 146 11.1 104 146 11.1 484 504 0.85
5MT3 MT 0.646 286 270 – 362 – 150 179 1.4 – – – – – –
5MT4 MT 0.593 645 1446 – 1876 – 467 515 1.1 – – – – – –
5MT5 MT 0.627 649 910 910 1103 1103 474 557 1.4 – – – – – –
5MT6 MT 0.626 386 517 – 656 – 228 262 1.4 – – – – – –
5MT7 MT 0.650 342 272 272 352 352 199 243 3.5 206 242 2.2 247 243 0.79
5MT8 MT 0.659 646 310 310 385 385 260 334 9.2 260 334 9.0 365 367 1.15
5MT9 MT 0.650 650 309 309 383 383 221 279 6.0 224 278 4.4 374 315 0.86
5SD1 SD 0.639 647 846 – 1098 – 259 324 3.1 263 318 2.5 427 360 0.66
5SD2 SD 0.630 641 1028 1131* 1261 1389* 300 364 2.4 314 355 1.6 394 363 0.78
5SD3 SD 0.631 645 917 917 1120 1120 375 465 2.2 – – – – – –
5SD4 SD 0.648 647 644 – 815 – 211 260 3.4 215 257 2.8 408 314 0.61
5SD5 SD 0.561 599 1348 – 1916 – 485 578 1.0 – – – – – –
5SD6 SD 0.649 548 946 – 1216 – 226 260 2.3 234 257 1.8 344 278 0.63
5SD7 SD 0.641 294 675 – 865 – 114 137 2.5 116 133 1.8 177 145 0.58
5SD8 SD 0.580 349 1181 – 1551 – 234 272 1.3 – – – – – –

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS 277
q

0.50
0.79

0.77

0.73
0.68

0.55
0.8
1.1

0.7
0.7
0.8
0.6
–
–
–

–
CS
–
–
–

–
335
336

250
260
298
279
247
322

209

206
323

275
394
320

318
313
325
385
285
377

201

220
375

374
–
–
–

–
UIS
PTS
13.5
10.2

2.6
2.5
2.4
2.7
11.4
17.5

1.2

1.5
2.3

3.1
–

–
–
–
–

QSS

ε1
107

212
227
279
223

112

208

202
288

214
57

22
–
–
–

q
189
180
223
182

177

184
231

170
34
88

28
84
–
–
–

CS
13.5
11.3
1.8
1.2
1.0
3.3
3.1
3.0
3.4
11.2
17.5
1.1
2.3
0.5
2.3
3.0
1.3
3.8
107
457
502
234
215
230
283
225

112
618
214
311
208
293
510
216
57

22

PTS UIS
34
88

27
84
373
440
193
185
177
219
180

530
164
307
176
225
403
167

QSS

p⬘
886*
134

366

708

112
1396

1768
58

23

Fig. 2. Characteristic states of undrained shearing behaviour of

–
–

–
–

–
–
–
–

sand: critical state (CS), phase transformation state (PTS),

quasi-steady state (QSS), and undrained instability state (UIS)
1801
1847

1396

1768

1774
58

23
134

366
735
812
708
853

112

791

809
934

646

tests that did reach the CS; it simply enhances the

existing dataset.
(b) Phase transformation state (PTS). The phase transfor-
mation is the state at which the sand response changes
629*
1053

1228
35

30
84
108

276

559
–
–

–
–

–
–
–
–

from contractive to dilative. In undrained shearing,

phase transformation is associated with a local mini-
mum in the mean effective stress p9 (Ishihara et al.,
1975).
35

30
84
108

276
570
607
559
641

561

619
722

471
1323
1316

1053

1228

1214

(c) Quasi-steady state (QSS). The quasi-steady state is

defined as the state at which the deviatoric stress q
reaches a local minimum in undrained shearing
(Alarcon-Guzman et al., 1988). Experimental results
show that the QSS constitutes a distinct soil state,
643
542
649
650
303
540
533
530
648
502
595
646
333
342
344
643
550
649

* Tests for which extrapolation was performed

which, strictly speaking, does not coincide with the

PTS. In other words, the local minima in q and p9 do
not occur at the same axial strain, with the QSS
0.622
0.600
0.541
0.503
0.571
0.588
0.563
0.581
0.562
0.582
0.556
0.481
0.523
0.488
0.517
0.509
0.484
0.496

preceding the PTS. Despite the fact that the PTS and
the QSS are very close to each other in the stress path
plots, the QSS may occur at axial strains 40% lower
than that required for reaching the PTS, though, in
Post-consolidation values.
MT
MT
MT
MT
MT

MT
MT
MT
SD
SD
SD
SD

SD
SD
SD
SD
SD
SD

absolute terms, this strain difference rarely exceeds

1.5%. Nonetheless, the shear strength at the QSS and
the PTS are almost identical. Unlike the PTS, the QSS
vanishes for tests that start from soil states that are well
10MT1
10MT2
10MT3
10MT4
10MT5

15MT1
15MT2
15MT3
10SD1
10SD2
10SD3
10SD4

15SD1
15SD2
15SD3
15SD4
15SD5
5SD3

below the CS line.

(d ) Undrained instability state (UIS). The undrained
instability state is associated with the onset of flow
liquefaction; it is the state at which q reaches a local
10%

15%
silt

silt

and temporary maximum. The UIS vanishes for tests

y

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 278 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
1800 Test 0WP2 Test MT8 1800
e ⫽ 0·584 (WP) e ⫽ 0·646
1600 (MT) 1600
Test 0SD7
1400
e ⫽ 0·631 (SD) 1400 Test 5SD2
Test 5SD3 e ⫽ 0·630 (SD)
1200 e ⫽ 0·631 (SD)
q ⫽ σ1 ⫺ σ3: kPa

1200

q ⫽ σ1 ⫺ σ3: kPa
Test 0SD3 Test 5MT5
1000 e ⫽ 0·627 (MT) Test 5SD1
e ⫽ 0·652 (SD) 1000
e ⫽ 0·639 (SD)
800
800
600
Test 5SD4
600
e ⫽ 0·648 (SD)
400 Test 0MT13
e ⫽ 0·707 (MT) 400 Test 5MT2
200 e ⫽ 0·671 (MT)
200
0 Test 5MT1
0 5 10 15 20 e ⫽ 0·720 (MT)
ε1: % 0
0 5 10 15 20 25
(a)
ε1: %
(a)

1800
1800
1600
1600
1400
1400

q ⫽ σ1 ⫺ σ3: kPa 1200

1200
q ⫽ σ1 ⫺ σ3: kPa

Test 5SD3
e ⫽ 0·631 (SD)
1000 1000 Test 5SD2
e ⫽ 0·630 (SD)

800 800
Test 0WP2 Test 5SD1
Test 5MT5
Test 0SD3 e ⫽ 0·584 (WP) e ⫽ 0·639 (SD)
600 e ⫽ 0·652 (SD) 600 e ⫽ 0·627 (MT)
Test 5SD4
Test MT8 Test 5MT2
e ⫽ 0·648 (SD)
400 e ⫽ 0·646 (MT) 400 e ⫽ 0·671 (MT)

200 Test 0SD7

Test 0MT13 200 Test 5MT1
e ⫽ 0·631 (SD)
e ⫽ 0·707 (MT) e ⫽ 0·720 (MT)
0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400
p⬘⫽ (σ1⬘⫹ 2σ⬘3)3: kPa p⬘ ⫽ (σ⬘1 ⫹ 2σ⬘3)/3: kPa
(b) (b)

Fig. 3. (a) Stress–strain curves and (b) stress paths from tests Fig. 4. (a) Stress–strain curves and (b) stress paths from tests
on clean sand with initial p9  650 kPa on sand with 5% silt content and initial p9  650 kPa

that start from soil states that are well below the CS
line.
The QSS appears in conjunction with the UIS: that is, a
specimen that exhibits the QSS also exhibits the UIS. The
UIS and the QSS are of special interest to engineers because
they correspond to the peak and minimum undrained shear
strength of the sand at relatively small strain levels. The
stress–strain curves and the stress paths exhibited by clean
sand and 5% silty sand specimens prepared with different
specimen preparation methods are shown in Figs 3 and 4
respectively. The specimens were consolidated to different
void ratios and to p9 of about 650 kPa. In these figures, we
can observe, as expected, that the sand becomes less con-
tractive (more dilative) with decreasing void ratio. In addi-
tion, we can also see that moist-tamped (MT) specimens
have larger shear strength at the UIS than the slurry-depos-
ited (SD) specimens. This trend was also observed for the
10% and 15% silty sand specimens, and it may be attributed
to the different initial fabric (mainly the orientation of the
sand grains) produced by the two methods of specimen
preparation employed.
Figure 5 shows the results of two tests performed on clean
sand and 10% silty sand. The specimens were prepared
using SD and were consolidated to similar p9. As illustrated
in the figure, the 10% silty sand is less dilative and reaches
a lower CS than the clean sand, despite the fact that the void
ratio of the clean sand was higher. These results are in
agreement with the well-established fact that, for a given
void ratio, the addition of small amounts of non-plastic silt
leads to a decrease in dilativeness and a shift of the CS line
down in the e–p9 plane (Thevanayagam et al., 2002; Ni et
al., 2004).
Interpretation of test results
Critical state. The critical state framework has been effective
in the formulation of constitutive models and the quantifica-
tion of the mechanical behaviour of sands. Different
parameters have been proposed that express the distance
between the current state and the CSL. Among them, the
most popular is the difference between the current void ratio
e and the critical-state void ratio eCS corresponding to the
current p9 (Wroth & Bassett, 1965; Been & Jefferies, 1985),
which is commonly referred to as the state parameter ł.
Several advanced constitutive models make use of the state
parameter by setting a number of their components, such as
the dilatancy, the plastic modulus and the peak strength, as

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS 279
1600 0·75

Clean sand ?
1400 0·70
Test 0SD5 e e
e ⫽ 0·631 (SD) e
1200 0·65 e
e Clean sand
FC ⫽ 5%
q ⫽ σ1 ⫺ σ3: kPa

Void ratio
1000 0·60

800 0·55
FC ⫽ 10%
e
600 0·50
10% silty sand
FC ⫽ 15%
400 Test 10SD3 0·45
e ⫽ 0·581 (SD)
200 0·40
10 100 1000 10 000
p⬘: kPa e: extrapolated
0
0 5 10 15 20
ε1: % FC ⫽ 0% - MT FC ⫽ 0% - SD FC ⫽ 0% - SD (drained)
FC ⫽ 5% - MT FC ⫽ 5% - SD FC ⫽ 5% - SD (drained)
(a) FC ⫽ 10% - MT FC ⫽ 10% - SD FC ⫽ 10% - SD (drained)
FC ⫽ 15% - MT FC ⫽ 15% - SD FC ⫽ 15% - SD (drained)
1600 FC ⫽ 0% - WP

Fig. 6. Critical state locus in e–p9 space for Ottawa sand with
1400
0%, 5%, 10% and 15% non-plastic silt
1200
q ⫽ σ1 ⫺ σ3: kPa

1000
10% silty sand that is as large as the specimen diameter (Papadimitriou et
800 Test 10SD3
al., 2005).
e ⫽ 0·581 (SD)
600
Critical state data from drained TX compression tests
performed on the same materials considered in this paper
400 are also plotted in Fig. 6 (Carraro, 2004). These specimens
were prepared using slurry deposition and were sheared to
200 Clean sand axial strains up to 28%. Only drained tests on loose speci-
Test 0SD5 mens (D R , 41%) were included because, in such tests, the
e 5 0·631 (SD)
0 state measured at the end of shearing is close to the critical
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 state. Localisation and intense shear banding in denser speci-
p⬘ ⫽ (σ⬘1 ⫹ 2σ⬘3)/3: kPa
mens prevent the determination of the eCS through global
(b)
measurements. The drained test data agree well with those
Fig. 5 (a) Stress–strain curves and (b) stress paths from tests on from undrained tests for clean and 5% silty sand, but some
sand with 0% and 10% silt content, and void ratios around 0.6 discrepancies can be observed for a few tests performed on
10% and 15% silty sand specimens.
In the past, the CS line of sands was assumed to be a
straight line in the e–log p9 plane. A better representation of
the CS locus can be achieved through a power function of
functions of ł (e.g. Jefferies, 1993; Manzari & Dafalias, the form
1997; Gajo & Wood, 1999). Therefore the establishment of


the critical state line is crucial for the development and use p9
of constitutive models for sands. eCS ¼ˆº (1)
pA
The critical state data for clean and silty Ottawa sand
are plotted in the e–p9 plane in Fig. 6. As mentioned
where pA is a reference stress (typically taken as the atmo-
previously, tests that did not reach CS, and for which
spheric pressure), and ˆ, º and  are fitting parameters (Li
extrapolation was not possible, are omitted from this plot.
& Wang, 1998). The CS lines (Fig. 6) of the mixtures of
The silt contents reported as 5%, 10% and 15% are only
sand and silt investigated were obtained by least-squares
nominal values, as the fines content of the actual speci-
regression over the undrained test data with the constraint
mens varied by 25% around the nominal values. The
that the intercept ˆ should be less or equal to emax , in
data shown in Fig. 6 for each sand mixture show that
accordance with Riemer & Seed (1997). From Fig. 6, we
there is no visible distinction between the critical state loci
can see that increasing the non-plastic silt content causes a
of slurry-deposited specimens and that of moist-tamped
downward translation of the CS loci in the e–p9 space. The
specimens. These results suggest that sands tend to achieve
scatter in the data increases as the silt content goes up. This
a unique fabric at critical state (Ishihara, 1993; Verdugo &
may be attributed to the increased difficulty in obtaining
Ishihara, 1996). Similar findings were reported by Ishihara
uniform specimens with increasing silt content.
(1993) and Zlatović & Ishihara (1997) for specimens
The CS line in the p9–q plane is represented well by a
prepared using moist tamping and dry deposition, and by
straight line passing through the origin,
Been et al. (1991) for specimens prepared using moist
tamping and water pluviation. However, experimental data
q ¼ M CS  p9 (2)
on Toyoura sand, in conjunction with constitutive model-
ling, suggest that such an agreement may not exist if where MCS is a constant equal to the stress ratio at critical
moist tamping is performed using a tamper of diameter state. The critical state friction angle CS in TX compression

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 280 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
conditions can be extracted from the stress ratio at critical
state using
3M CS
sin CS ¼
6 þ M CS
The values for the fitting parameters ˆ, º ,  and MCS are
summarised in Table 3. Fig. 7 shows data from undrained
TX tests plotted along with data from drained TX tests on
loose and dense specimens (Carraro, 2004) in p9–q space.
(Note that, in the determination of the least-squares regres-
sion lines, only the undrained test data were used.) As shown
in Fig. 7, the critical-state friction angle of the sand in-
creases with increasing non-plastic silt content. The CS
values reported in Fig. 7 and Table 3 are in agreement with
those provided by Salgado et al. (2000) and Carraro et al.
(2003). The present results suggest that the addition of 5%,
10% and 15% silt in the sand leads to an increase in CS by
1%, 5% and 14% respectively. Indications that CS increases
(3) with silt content can be found in previous studies published
in the technical literature. Data by Ni et al. (2004) showed
that the addition of 9% non-plastic silt (crushed silica) to
the host sand results in a 2.5% increase on average in CS .
Sladen et al. (1985) showed that Nerlerk sand with 12%
fines has a CS that is 4% higher than that of clean Nerlerk
sand. In contrast, data for Canadian silty sands (with most
of the data corresponding to FC in the 0–10% range)
compiled by Bouckovalas et al. (2003) indicate that the CS
is rather insensitive to the silt content, with only a very
slight increase with increasing FC.
An increase in CS with increasing silt content can be

Table 3. Critical state parameters obtained through least-squares regression.

Percentage of silt ˆ º  MCS (CS )

0 0.780 0.081 0.204 1.209 (30.28)

5 0.700 0.030 0.374 1.226 (30.68)
10 0.650 0.048 0.283 1.279 (31.88)
15 0.598 0.037 0.453 1.393 (34.48)

2400 1600

2000 ηCS ⫽ 1·209

ηCS ⫽ 1·226
1 φCS ⫽ 30·2°
1200 1 φ ⫽ 30·6°
CS

1600
q: kPa
q: kPa

1200 800

800
Moist-tamped
400 Moist-tamped
Slurry-deposited
400 Slurry-deposited
Water-pluviated
Slurry-deposited (drained) Slurry-deposited (Drained)
0 0
0 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 0 400 800 1200 1600
p⬘: kPa p⬘: kPa
(a) (b)

1200 2000
ηCS ⫽ 1·279 ηCS ⫽ 1·393
1000
1 φCS ⫽ 31·8° 1 φCS ⫽ 34·4°
1600

800
1200
q: kPa
q: kPa

600

800
400
Moist-tamped Moist-tamped
400
200 Slurry-deposited Slurry-deposited

Slurry-deposited (drained) Slurry-deposited (drained)

0 0
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 0 400 800 1200 1600 2000
p⬘: kPa p⬘: kPa
(c) (d)

Fig. 7. Critical-state locus in p9–q space for Ottawa sand with (a) 0%, (b) 5%, (c) 10% and (d) 15% non-plastic silt

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS
understood physically by recognising that the presence of
relatively small amounts of silt between the sand grains adds
to the shear strength of the ‘flow’ fabric of the sand
developing at critical state (and thus to the value of CS )
because of the wedging effect the angular silt particles have.
The more angular the silt particles are and the more rounded
the sand particles are, the larger the contribution of the silt
to the CS will be. The CS increase observed in the present
tests is higher than what was observed in the papers
mentioned earlier. The silt used in this study (produced by
crushing Ottawa sand particles) has very angular particles,
in contrast to the sand particles, which are rounded. The
large contrast in angularity between fines and host sand
leads to a magnification of the effect of silt fines on the
CS .
Phase transformation state. Data from undrained tests on
Toyoura sand have demonstrated that the phase transforma-
tion states do not form a unique locus either in the e–p9
plane (Yoshimine & Ishihara, 1998) or in the p9–q plane (Li
& Dafalias, 2000). Li & Dafalias (2000) proposed that the
dependence between the stress ratio PT at phase transforma-
tion and the distance from the PTS to the CSL (expressed by
281
the state parameter at phase transformation łPT ) can be
quantified by the equation
PT ¼ M CS exp½k d łPT  (4)
where kd is a fitting parameter.
Figure 8 shows PT plotted against the łPT for all sand
mixtures considered. The PT values from drained tests
(Carraro, 2004), obtained from stress–dilatancy data follow-
ing procedures similar to those outlined by Been & Jefferies
(2004), are also included in the figure. For sands with 0%,
5% and 10% non-plastic silt content, the data indicate that
the stress ratio at phase transformation decreases with de-
creasing state parameter (i.e. the soil state moves further
downward from the CS line in the e–p9 plane), thus support-
ing the trend suggested by equation (4). Similar trends are
observed in data from undrained triaxial tests on Toyoura
sand by Yoshimine et al. (1998) and Yoshimine & Ishihara
(1998). A clear relationship was not observed in the PT –
łPT space for the 15% silty sand data (this may be
attributed to the data scatter possibly caused by non-unifor-
mities in specimens with high percentage of silt). For some
tests, the PT exceeds the critical-state stress ratio MCS . Such
exceedances are most likely an artefact of the experimental
procedures and their limitations at very low stresses rather
than a reflection of actual soil behaviour. Thus the MCS can

1·6
1·8

1·6 1·4

1·4 1·2

1·2
1·0
1·0
ηPT
ηPT

0·8
0·8
0·6
0·6 Moist-tamped Moist-tamped
0·4
0·4 Slurry-deposited
Slurry-deposited
Water-pluviated 0·2
0·2 Slurry-deposited (drained)
Slurry-deposited (drained)
0 0
⫺0·20 ⫺0·15 ⫺0·10 ⫺0·05 0 0·05 ⫺0·20 ⫺0·15 ⫺0·10 ⫺0·05 0 0·05
ψPT ψPT
(a) (b)

1·6
1·8

1·6 1·4

1·4 1·2

1·2
1·0
1·0
ηPT
ηPT

0·8
0·8
0·6
0·6
Moist tamping
Moist-tamped 0·4
0·4 Slurry deposition
Slurry-deposited
0·2 0·2 Slurry deposition (drained)
Slurry-deposited (drained)
0 0
⫺0·20 ⫺0·15 ⫺0·10 ⫺0·05 0 0·05 ⫺0·20 ⫺0·15 ⫺0·10 ⫺0·05 0 0·05
ψPT ψPT
(c) (d)

Fig. 8. Stress ratio at phase transformation as a function of the state parameter for (a) 0%, (b) 5%, (c) 10% and
(d) 15% non-plastic silt

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 282 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
1·0 1·0
p⬘0 ⫽ 650 kPa (SD) p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (MT)
0·9 p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (MT) 0·9 p⬘0 ⫽ 250–500 kPa (MT)
p⬘0 ⫽ 250–500 kPa (MT)
0·8 0·8 p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (SD)
p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (SD-WP) p⬘0 ⫽ 650 kPa (MT)
p⬘0 ⫽ 250–500 kPa (SD-WP) p⬘0 ⫽ 250–500 kPa (SD)
0·7 0·7
p⬘0 ⫽ 100–250 kPa (SD-WP) p⬘0 ⫽ 100 kPa (MT) Fitting parameters
0·6 0·6 for eq. (5)
p⬘0 ⫽ 450 kPa (SD) Fitting parameters
MT SD
uf 0·5 uf 0·5
α ⫽ 0·038 α ⫽ 0·095 SD
p⬘0 ⫽ 250 kPa (SD) for eq. (5)
MT SD β ⫽ 1·105 β ⫽ 1·209
0·4 0·4
p⬘0 ⫽ 650 kPa (MT) α ⫽ 0·114 α ⫽ 0·0 γ ⫽ 0·012 γ ⫽ 0·000
n ⫽ 0·739 n ⫽ indiff. p⬘0 ⫽ 500 kPa (MT)
0·3 β ⫽ 2·591 β ⫽ 3·979 0·3
?
p⬘0 ⫽ 450 kPa (MT)
γ ⫽ 0·006 γ ⫽ 0·121
0·2 0·2
n ⫽ 1·298 n ⫽ 0·201
0·1 0·1
p⬘0 ⫽ 100 kPa (SD) p⬘0 ⫽ 250 kPa (MT)
0 0
0·50 0·55 0·60 0·65 0·70 0·75 0·50 0·55 0·60 0·65 0·70
Void ratio Void ratio
(a) (b)

1·0 1·0
p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (MT)
0·9 0·9
p⬘0 ⫽ 300–500 kPa (MT)
0·8 p⬘0 ⫽ 600–650 kPa (SD) 0·8
p⬘0 ⫽ 500–600 kPa (SD)
0·7 0·7
?
0·6 0·6
p⬘0 ⫽ 650 kPa (MT)
uf 0·5 Fitting parameters uf 0·5
for eq. (5)
p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (MT)
0·4 p⬘0 ⫽ 500 kPa (MT) MT 0·4
α ⫽ 0·00 p⬘0 ⫽ 500–650 kPa (SD)
0·3 β ⫽ 1·543 0·3
p⬘0 ⫽ 300–500 kPa (SD)
γ ⫽ 0·037
0·2 0·2
n ⫽ 0·671
0·1 0·1
p⬘0 ⫽ 300 kPa (MT)
0 0
0·45 0·50 0·55 0·60 0·65 0·45 0·50 0·55 0·60
Void ratio Void ratio
(c) (d)

Fig. 9. Flow potential uf against void ratio and initial mean effective stress for (a) 0%, (b) 5%, (c) 10% and (d) 15% non-plastic silt

1·8

1·6
1·2
1·4
1·0
1·2

1·0 0·8
ε1,QSS/ε1,PT

η
0·8 0·6

0·6 Clean sand

PT QSS 0·4
Clean sand 5% silty sand
0·4
5% silty sand 10% silty sand
0·2
0·2 10% silty sand
15% silty sand
15% silty sand
0 0
⫺0·10 ⫺0·08 ⫺0·06 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 0·08 0·10 ⫺0·05 0 0·05 0·10
ψ0 ψ0

Fig. 10. Stress ratio at the QSS and the PTS as a function of Fig. 11. Ratio of axial strain at QSS to axial strain at PTS
the initial state parameter against the initial state parameter

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS 283
20·0
Clean sand
relationships for slurry-deposited and moist-tamped speci-
18·0 mens were not identified; these may have been obscured by
5% silty sand
16·0 the scatter of the experimental data, which was observed
10% silty sand
mainly in the results for MT specimens.
Axial strain at QSS: %

14·0 15% silty sand Estimates of PT can be obtained using equation (4) if the
12·0 mean effective stress p9PT at phase transformation is known,
10·0
for the state parameter at phase transformation follows
directly from it (łPT ¼ e  ˆ + º.( p9PT / p9A ) ). In order to
8·0 estimate the shear strength qPT at phase transformation, a
6·0 variable of greater practical interest than PT , knowledge of
p9PT is again required. Therefore a way to predict the value
4·0
of p9PT based on the initial soil state (i.e. the void ratio e0
2·0 after consolidation, which remains constant throughout the
0 undrained shearing, and the initial mean effective stress p90 )
⫺0·050 ⫺0·025 0 0·025 0·050 0·075 0·100 is needed.
ψ0
Yoshimine & Ishihara (1998) introduced a parameter
Fig. 12. Axial strain required to reach the QSS against the called flow potential uf (uf ¼ 1  p9PT = p90 ) to represent the
initial state parameter undrained instability of sands. This parameter is equivalent
to the collapse potential parameter proposed by
Thevanayagam et al. (2002). The prediction of uf allows
direct determination of p9PT . Based both on the present data
be taken as an upper bound to the values yielded by equa- and the data of Yoshimine & Ishihara (1998), the following
tion (4). The fitting parameter kd in equation (4), obtained observations can be made.
through least-squares regression over the undrained test data,
is equal to 1.52, 0.80, and 1.51 for sands with 0%, 5% and
10% silt content respectively. Differences in the PT –łPT (a) For a given p90 , p9PT decreases towards its minimum

0·7 0·9
e ⫽ 0·696 0·682
0·646 0·8 e ⫽ 0·671
0·6
0·650
0·631 0·701
0·694 0·7
0·707
0·5 0·725 0·707
0·6 0·630
0·693 0·714 0·659
0·639
0·4 0·667 0·648 0·5 e ⫽ 0·641 0·649
e ⫽ 0·645
qp/p⬘0

0·711 0·650
qp/p⬘0

0·724 0·648
0·654 0·720
0·3 0·652 0·4
0·652
0·3
0·2
Moist-tamped 0·2
Moist-tamped
0·1 Slurry-deposited
0·1
Water-pluviated Slurry-deposited
0 0·0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 0 200 400 600 800
p⬘0: kPa p⬘0: kPa
(a) (b)

0·7 0·7
0·600 e ⫽ 0·523

0·6 0·6
0·517 0·556
0·581 e ⫽ 0·622
e ⫽ 0·582 0·509
0·5 e ⫽ 0·563 0·5
0·588 0·562 0·496

0·4 0·4
qp/p⬘0

qp/p⬘0

0·3 0·3

0·2 0·2
Moist-tamped
Moist-tamped
0·1 Slurry-deposited 0·1
Slurry-deposited
0 0
400 450 500 550 600 650 700 200 300 400 500 600 700
p⬘0: kPa p⬘0: kPa
(c) (d)

Fig. 13. Strength at the undrained instability state against the initial mean effective stress for (a) 0%, (b) 5%, (c) 10%
and (d) 15% non-plastic silt

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 284 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
possible value (which is zero) as the void ratio 9. Data points were grouped based on the initial confining
approaches high values. stress and method of specimen preparation. Fitting para-
(b) p9PT approaches p90 as the void ratio decreases. meters for equation (5) were derived through least-squares
regression only for groups containing a sufficient number of
Therefore the value of uf is equal to 1 at high void ratios data points. It can be seen in the figure that the data points
(i.e. in the vicinity of the CSL intercept ˆ) and approaches for MT specimens tend to plot slightly below those for the
0 at low void ratios. The Yoshimine & Ishihara (1998) SD specimens. This means that the MT specimens have a
experimental results for Toyoura sand show that, for a given lower flow potential than the SD specimens: that is, that they
e0 , uf generally increases with increasing p90 . However, for have a more stable undrained behaviour for the same range
low relative densities (DR , 30%) and low stresses ( p90 , of void ratios and p90 . The uf values predicted by equation
500 kPa), uf appears to be relatively insensitive to p90 . The (5) were always within 25% of the actual uf values.
flow potential value can be predicted reasonably well using
the mathematical formula
2 0 1 3 Quasi-steady state. The quasi-steady state is closely asso-
ˆ e
u f ¼ exp 6
6B
n C 7 7 (5) ciated with the state of phase transformation. The differences
4 @ p90 A 5 between the shear strengths and mean effective stresses at the
Æþª
pA QSS and the PTS did not exceed 4% and 11% respectively.
Generally, the stress ratio QSS at the quasi-steady state can
where Æ, , ª and n are constants that can be determined by be up to 10% smaller than the PT , with the higher deviation
least-squares regression on a given dataset of undrained TX occurring for specimens with low initial state parameter ł0
compression tests. (¼ e  ˆ + º.( p90 / p9A ) ) (Fig. 10). Unlike the PTS, the QSS
Flow potential values are plotted against void ratio in Fig. vanishes for soil states lying well below the CS line. In Fig.

0·7 1·0

0·696 0·9
0·6 0·646 e ⫽ 0·682
0·630
0·8 0·671
0·694 0·701
0·707
0·5 0·707
0·7 0·65
0·7251
0·648
e ⫽ 0·645 0·667 0·693 0·714 0·6 e ⫽ 0·63
0·4 0·724
0·659
0·639
qp/p⬘0
qp/p⬘0

0·654 0·7112 0·5 0·649 0·65

0·641
0·648
0·3 0·652 0·652 0·72
0·4

0·2 0·3

0·2
0·1 Moist-tamped
Slurry-deposited Moist-tamped
0·1
Water-pluviated Slurry-deposited

0 0
⫺0·06 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 0·08 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 0·08 0·10
ψ0 ψ0
(a) (b)

0·7 0·7

0·6 0·523
0·6 0·6
e ⫽ 0·517

0·581 e ⫽ 0·556
0·622
0·5 0·5 0·509 0·582
0·563
e ⫽ 0·588
0·496
0·4 0·562 0·4
qp/p⬘0
qp/p⬘0

0·3 0·3

0·2 0·2

0·1 0·1 Moist-tamped

Moist-tamped
Slurry-deposited Slurry-deposited

0 0
⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 0·08 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 0·08
ψ0 ψ0
(c) (d)

Fig. 14. Strength at the undrained instability state against the initial state parameter for (a) 0%, (b) 5%, (c) 10%
and (d) 15% non-plastic silt

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS 285
10, it can be seen that tests with ł0 less than 0.04 to 0.02 difference between the slurry-deposited specimens and the
do not show a QSS, with the sand exhibiting strain-hardening moist-tamped specimens with respect to the strength at UIS.
continuously until critical state. Although the MT specimens prepared in this study have, in
The difference in the axial strains required to reach the general, higher void ratios than the SD ones, the qp values for
QSS and the PTS is more significant. For specimens with the MT specimens are significantly higher than those of the
initial states on or below the CSL, the axial strain 1,QSS SD specimens consolidated to similar p90 or ł0 (Figs 13 and
required to reach the QSS can be 20–40% smaller than the 14). This can be attributed to differences in the initial fabric
axial strain 1,PT required to reach the PTS (Fig. 11). In Fig. of the specimens prepared with the different specimen
12, the 1,QSS is plotted against the initial state parameter ł0 preparation methods. Given that there were relatively small
for all the undrained tests performed. The strain that devel- differences between the behaviour of SD and MT specimens
ops after collapse and until the sand starts to harden again is at phase transformation, and that their critical state loci are
relatively small (of the order of 1–3%) for specimens with essentially the same, we can derive the conclusion (with
initial states that lie below or even slightly above the CSL respect always to the materials and methods used herein) that
(ł0 , 0.01). However, it should be noted that the above the initial fabric of the sand influences only the early stages
observations may be true only for triaxial compression of shearing, with its impact erased at large shear strains.
conditions. It is well known that the behaviour of sands is The mean effective stress p9p at the undrained instability
most stable under such stress conditions. state shows a strong correlation with p90 , as reported by
Ishihara (1993). The test results from the present study
indicate that p9p is proportional to p90 , with the p9p / p90 ratio
Undrained instability state. Like the quasi-steady state, the being, in general, equal to around 0.6 (Fig. 15). This ratio
undrained instability state (UIS) is a state of practical for moist-tamped Toyoura sand is 0.61 (Ishihara, 1993). The
importance because it constitutes the onset of flow liquefac- MT specimens tested in this study produced a slightly higher
tion. The axial strain required to reach the UIS in the tests value for the p9p / p90 ratio than the SD specimens. The
performed in the context of this study falls mainly in the differences, however, become negligible for silt contents
range 0.4–0.8%, with the larger axial strain values being equal to 10% and 15%, although the data are not conclusive
associated with higher values of UIS shear strength qp . As owing to the small number of data points for the MT
pointed out previously in the paper, there is a striking specimens at such fines contents.

500 500
0·66
450 450
1
400 400 1
0·64
350 350

300 300 0·63

1
p⬘p: kPa

p⬘p: kPa

0·60
250 1 250

200 200
Moist-tamped
150 150
Slurry-deposited
100 100 Moist-tamped
Water-pluviated
50 50 Slurry-deposited

0 0
0 200 400 600 800 0 200 400 600 800
p⬘0: kPa p⬘0: kPa
(a) (b)

450 500
0·61
400 450
1
400
350
350
300
300
0·6
p⬘p: kPa
p⬘p: kPa

250
1 250 0·59
200 1
200
150
150
Moist-tamped
100 100 Moist-tamped
Slurry-deposited
50 50 Slurry-deposited
0 0
0 200 400 600 800 0 200 400 600 800
p⬘0: kPa p⬘0: kPa
(c) (d)

Fig. 15. Mean effective stress at the undrained instability state as a function of the initial mean effective stress for (a)
0%, (b) 5%, (c) 10% and (d) 15% non-plastic silt

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 286 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
Unlike the stress ratio at PTS, the stress ratio p at the
UIS shows higher variability. Values as low as 45% and as
high as 85% of the corresponding critical state stress ratio
MCS are observed in the present dataset. In general, MT
specimens exhibit higher p than SD specimens (Fig. 16). In
addition, for a given specimen preparation method, it appears
that the lower the void ratio and the lower the state
parameter łp at UIS, the higher the p value becomes.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
A series of undrained triaxial compression tests were
performed on clean and silty sands with non-plastic silt
contents ranging from 5% to 15%. Specimens were prepared
using mainly slurry deposition and moist tamping methods.
The main focus of this paper was on shedding some light on
the very distinctive states of the monotonic undrained
response of sands. These states are: the critical state, the
phase transformation state, the quasi-steady state, and the
undrained instability state. The following conclusions can be
reached, irrespective of silt content and specimen preparation
method.
(a) The critical state from undrained tests is in agreement
with that found from drained tests.
(b) The stress ratio at the phase transformation state
decreases monotonically with decreasing state parameter.
(c) The shear strength at the undrained instability state
increases with increasing sand density.
The axial strain required to reach the QSS (local mini-
mum in deviatoric stress) can be 40% lower than that
required for reaching the PTS (local minimum in mean
effective stress). A mathematical formula that allows the
estimation of the mean effective stress at the PTS in terms
of the void ratio and the initial mean effective stress was
also proposed.
With respect to the fines content, an increase in the non-
plastic fines content of the sand leads to a downward shift
of the critical-state line and to an increase of the critical-
state friction angle. Moreover, the experimental results sug-
gest that the presence of small amounts of non-plastic fines
does not alter the nature and the general characteristics of
the monotonic undrained behaviour of sands. This means
that constitutive modelling concepts and approaches devel-
oped for clean sand can be easily extended to silty sand by
simply selecting appropriate values for the model input
parameters.
Finally, the initial fabric of the sand appears to have a
significant effect in the early stages of shearing. The moist-
tamping specimen preparation method used in this study
produced specimens that demonstrated considerably larger
shear strength at the undrained instability state and a slightly
smaller flow potential than their slurry-deposited counter-
parts; these trends can be attributed to the inherent differ-

1·2 1·2

0·671
0·650 0·659
1·0 0·682 1·0
0·696 0·630
0·646 0·650
0·631 0·694 0·639
0·8 0·701 0·707 0·8 0·649
0·641
e ⫽ 0·648 0·725 e ⫽ 0·648
0·707 e ⫽ 0·720
0·693 0·714
0·645
0·724
ηp 0·6 0·667 0·652 ηp 0·6
e ⫽ 0·711
0·654
0·652

0·4 0·4

Moist-tamped
Moist-tamped
0·2 0·2
Slurry-deposited
Slurry-deposited
Water-pluviated
0 0
⫺0·06 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06 0·08
ψp ψp
(a) (b)

1·2 1·2
0·600 0·523

1·0 e ⫽ 0·581
1·0 e ⫽ 0·517
e ⫽ 0·556 0·582
e ⫽ 0·622
0·563 0·509
0·8 0·562 0·588
0·8 0·496

ηp 0·6 ηp 0·6

0·4 0·4
Moist-tamped
Moist-tamped
0·2 0·2 Slurry-deposited
Slurry-deposited
0 0
⫺0·03 ⫺0·02 ⫺0·01 0 0·01 0·02 0·03 0·04 0·05 ⫺0·06 ⫺0·04 ⫺0·02 0 0·02 0·04 0·06
ψp ψp
(c) (d)

Fig. 16. Stress ratio at the undrained instability state against the corresponding state parameter for (a) 0%, (b) 5%, (c)
10% and (d) 15% non-plastic silt

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 UNDRAINED MONOTONIC RESPONSE OF CLEAN AND SILTY SANDS
ences in their initial fabric. The present data also support
also the notion that these differences in fabric vanish at
large strains, leading to a unique fabric at critical state.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The financial support provided to the second author by the
Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation is gratefully
acknowledged.
287
ous non-linear regression/optimisation was performed in both the
p9–1 and @ p9=@1 –1 data, by employing the global criterion
method (Rao, 1996). This consisted of, first, minimising the sum of
squares RSS of the relative errors for each of the p9–1 (RSS1 ) and
@ p9=@1 –1 (RSS2 ) curves independently. Relative errors were
multiplied by weight factors that increased linearly from the starting
point (point of inflexion) to the end of the test. Two sets of fitting
parameters, (Æs
, s
, ªs
) and (Æ






s , s , ªs ), were produced at this
initial stage, each being optimal to one of the two curves.
Subsequently, a combination of RSS1 and RSS2 following

8" #2
< RSS1 ð as , s , ªs Þ
APPENDIX. EXTRAPOLATION PROCEDURE F ð as , s , ªs Þ ¼ 1   
The CS for some tests was assessed through extrapolation by : RSS1 a
s , s
, ªs

fitting a sigmoidal function on the curve of @p9/@1 against 1 , (7)
starting at the point of inflexion (which occurs after the phase " #2 )1=2
transformation state) of the curve of p9 against 1 (Fig. 17). The RSS2 ð as , s , ªs Þ
þ 1  
finite difference method can be used to obtain the @p9/@1 data from RSS2 a






s , s , ªs
the measured p9–1 response. The sigmoidal function used is
expressed mathematically by
0 8 91
 <"
ªs
ªs #s = was minimised in order to obtain an optimal set of fitting parameters
@ p9 @ p9  B 1 1o C
¼ exp @  A (6) that provided a good match to both the p9–1 and @ p9=@1 –1
@1 @1 o : Æs Æs ;
curves. As can be seen in equation (7), RSS1 and RSS2 are
normalised with respect to the individual solutions obtained in the
where Æs , s , ªs are fitting parameters, and 1o and @@p91 jo are the initial stage in order to limit the bias caused by the significantly
axial strain and the value of the first derivative of the p9–1 curve larger scatter present in the @ p9=@1 data series than in the p9 data.
respectively, at the point of inflexion. According to equation (6), the The difference between the p9CS obtained as a result of the
inclination of the p9–1 curve decreases with strain and approaches extrapolation procedure and the p9 at the end of the test never
zero asymptotically. The fitted response in terms of p9 against 1 is exceeded 12% in relative terms or 103 kPa in absolute terms. The
determined by integrating equation (6) numerically (using Heun’s average difference was 8% on a relative basis and 45 kPa in absolute
method). terms. The qCS was determined by multiplying the p9CS obtained
In order to get the most reliable CS estimate possible, simultane- from the extrapolation by the stress ratio at the end of the test.

100 80
∂p⬘
∂p⬘
Stationary point
Stationary point ∂ε1 o
∂ε1 o
80
60
End of test
60 αs ⫽ 18·2
∂p⬘ ∂p⬘ αs ⫽ 18·8
βs ⫽ 1·52 40 βs ⫽ 1·02
∂ε1 γs ⫽ 10·7 ∂ε1
40 γs ⫽ 7·76
End of test

20
20 Extrapolation
Extrapolation

ε1o ε1,end-of-test ε1o ε1,end-of-test

0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
ε1: % ε1: %

1000 Extrapolation 1200

p⬘CS
p⬘CS
p⬘end⫺of⫺test p⬘end⫺of⫺test
End of test Extrapolation
800
Point of inflexion Point of inflexion End of test
800
600 αs ⫽ 18·2
p⬘: kPa
p⬘: kPa

βs ⫽ 1·52 p⬘o
γs ⫽ 10·7
400
400
p⬘o
p⬘PT αs ⫽ 18·8
200 βs ⫽ 1·02
p⬘PT γs ⫽ 7·76
ε1o ε1,end-of-test ε1o ε1,end-of-test
0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
ε1: % ε1: %
(a) (b)

Fig. 17. Examples demonstrating the extrapolation procedure used to obtain an estimate of the CS for: (a) test 0SD6; (b) test 5SD2

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 288 MURTHY, LOUKIDIS, CARRARO, PREZZI AND SALGADO
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